Policymakers gain knowledge on early childhood

ACTION

There is a clear imperative to use evidence when making decisions that will affect babies, children, and their families. Whether we work in national policy, local systems, or frontline services, drawing on evidence gives us as much confidence as possible that we are doing “the right thing”. Resources, energy and time are all finite, so we also need to be confident that we are using them strategically – in ways that are likely to improve young children’s experiences and outcomes, and avoid harm.

However, the meaning of “evidence-based” has narrowed in recent years, and often now refers to programmes and policies which have been shown to work through specific types of evaluation, such as randomised controlled trials (RCT). In fact, evidence-based means more than that. For many years, the literature on evidence-based practice in health, for example, has described professionals using research, alongside their own expertise, to consider the best course of treatment, in consultation with patients.